Interview With Tom DeLonge of blink-182: Older, But Still Not Grown Up

Four years had passed since Tom DeLonge, Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker shared a stage together, but at this year’s Grammy Awards, the members of blink-182 stood together and announced they’d be playing music together again. The trio that had acrimoniously disbanded following the abrupt resignation of DeLonge began communicating again in the wake of a plane accident involving Barker. A breakup became a reunion.

Of course, all three had moved on to different projects in the interim, most notably Angels & Airwaves, headed by DeLonge and +44, featuring Hoppus and Barker. But Hoppus has done production work for a myriad of bands, Barker has been working on hip-hop projects with DJ AM, and DeLonge has been something of an investor-creative director in Macbeth, a shoe company, and Modlife, a web venture for bands.

Now, with all their previous commitments on the side, the band few thought would tour again have embarked on a jaunt throughout the U.S. with Weezer and Taking Back Sunday, in what has quickly become one of the best-selling tours in the worst economy in decades. DeLonge explains.

How has the tour been? What’s the energy like?

Oh the tour’s insane. It’s somehow officially the biggest tour of the summer. Even tonight [Pittsburgh], it’s 20,000 some people, sold out. Last night, 23,000 people as well. It’s fucking crazy. No one understands why dick jokes got so popular. They’re sending down NASA scientists to really try and figure out why it’s so big. But the tour is amazing and the energy is awesome. We’re playing better than we ever have and we’re having a lot of fun. Mark drinks now too so now we’re both up there wasted. We don’t even remember the shit that we’re saying.

Is it a validating feeling? I know a lot of tours aren’t doing very well. Is it like, ‘Shit, I should have done this two years ago?’

I know, you would think. To give you an idea, the promoters bought the shows thinking we’d do 8,000 people a night. The average shows are almost 20,000 a night. No one thought, not the band, not the promoters, not the management, so it’s not like we got together going, ‘Fuck, we should have done this earlier.’ We got back together because Travis had that accident and we thought it would be good to play music again together. But one step at a time and we’re having a lot of fun. It’s great. I’m humbled by it, honestly, because we still are just a punk band at heart. We’re talking the band’s been together almost 20 years now I guess, well, we broke up, but we’ve been around for almost 20 years. It’s just nutty to see this right now. We’re very, very happy it’s working out so well. It’s obviously making the reunion very electric.

You mentioned the accident. Was there a moment of realization between the three of you, that leaving Blink on indefinite hiatus wasn’t the best thing?

No, it wasn’t like that. I honestly think a couple years ago none of us would have expected that we were going to play again. I still have Angels & Airwaves and we have a major release coming up in February, a movie and an album. Mark’s still producing all these different bands. Travis has a big hip-hop cameo big album thing that he’s been making for the past year—he still has DJ AM and himself. All of us still have all these things that are going on and we love them and they’re made for parts of our lives. It wasn’t like we were looking for this to happen. Now I think that this is going on all of us are trying to figure out—how does it fit in? It’s the biggest thing (laughs). It’s a bit of a juggle for myself because Angels & Airwaves is a full-time thing for me.

In doing this blog and thinking about this stuff, have you ever had any ideas for what kinds of tools (software, that is) that people could use to do things like share creative ideas in groups, create customer community, etc. etc.?,

What is really infuriating is his denial that he was attacking the Tea Party. He was “only reading a WSJ article” on the floor of the Senate. Hannity could have done a better job of hammering on THAT giant piece of brazen hypocrisy.,

What is really infuriating is his denial that he was attacking the Tea Party. He was “only reading a WSJ article” on the floor of the Senate. Hannity could have done a better job of hammering on THAT giant piece of brazen hypocrisy.,

I see two basic options for you: Reduce visibility and do something completely different, or stay visible and continue publishing your own stuff under your own name. All the options you cite can be assigned to one of these two categories. I dearly hope you go with the second option, even though I would totally understand if you decide otherwise.,

I’m not sure what you have against “The Five”. I mean, four of the five panel members are on the right. The only creep is Bob Beckel. I admit, his creepiness makes the show a bit harder to handle. But Greg Gutfeld makes up for it! I LOVE him!! Beckel will probably have a stroke or a heart attack on the show one day and they can just shove him off the stage and continue on.,

I do think that by working in a team, it will make it easier for you. The passion moves away from you and to the team of writers, the hate will move with it. Being a part of a groupblog would be a good solution.,

I’m not sure what you have against “The Five”. I mean, four of the five panel members are on the right. The only creep is Bob Beckel. I admit, his creepiness makes the show a bit harder to handle. But Greg Gutfeld makes up for it! I LOVE him!! Beckel will probably have a stroke or a heart attack on the show one day and they can just shove him off the stage and continue on.,

It’s entirely possible that I copied that individual number across incorrectly (and that the index was correct), but when I did the query just then it returned a Technorati Rank of 37, so as you say there would be no change in the rank, but an improvement in your index.,

Use your passion and geek expertise to liberate the latent creativity that resides in readers, something that works better than the linear, sequential and fast fading stream of comments (yeah, this is recursive). Comments are writing, but lets have something not as we know it. Writing in this box just feel a little klunky, there must be a better way, make a better blog :),

I think greater interaction among groups would result (mix up the tech bloggers and the marketers and the VCs and the usability people and, hell, even the sex bloggers) and really spark some awesome conversations.,

It’s entirely possible that I copied that individual number across incorrectly (and that the index was correct), but when I did the query just then it returned a Technorati Rank of 37, so as you say there would be no change in the rank, but an improvement in your index.,

The reality is that the establishment in the Senate HATE CCB, modest as it really is and see the new Boehner plan as an out, since they figure they will get Reid to make a compromise since it is only 22 Billion in cuts.,

I think greater interaction among groups would result (mix up the tech bloggers and the marketers and the VCs and the usability people and, hell, even the sex bloggers) and really spark some awesome conversations.,

Just look at the difference just 20-30 rock solid Tea Party conservatives have made in the House already. They’ve turned “1/3 of the government” on its head and started a war between the establishment party and the Tea Party.,

I’m not sure what you have against “The Five”. I mean, four of the five panel members are on the right. The only creep is Bob Beckel. I admit, his creepiness makes the show a bit harder to handle. But Greg Gutfeld makes up for it! I LOVE him!! Beckel will probably have a stroke or a heart attack on the show one day and they can just shove him off the stage and continue on.,

In doing this blog and thinking about this stuff, have you ever had any ideas for what kinds of tools (software, that is) that people could use to do things like share creative ideas in groups, create customer community, etc. etc.?,

Good for Hannity, hammering Mc Cain. Mc Cain off as so slimey. He completely bought into the Obama narrative and talks about the great calamity to come if there is no agreement, and continues to blast the Tea Party.,

Kathy, the content you have graciously shared with us every once in a while is both inspiring and entertaining. And a blog is the perfect medium for this. A lot of the content is about your style and creative personality. Thus, I would rule out the community-based ideas. I would probably only read your stuff anyway.,

I hate to see us lose your input but I wonder if simply publishing articles with no comments enabled and having a members-only forum wouldn’t be a good compromise. There’s something about the immediacy of the response form and the lack of accountability available from anonymity (oh, hypocritical me) that seems to encourage people’s awfulness.,

That’s fine for the House and Senate but for president, there is no way any conservative should vote for either Democrat that will be stuffed down our throats next year. The House is the grand prize. If we had someone like Jim Jordan as Speaker and more than the current 3 reliable conservative senators, the president wouldn’t matter.,

I think greater interaction among groups would result (mix up the tech bloggers and the marketers and the VCs and the usability people and, hell, even the sex bloggers) and really spark some awesome conversations.,

Use your passion and geek expertise to liberate the latent creativity that resides in readers, something that works better than the linear, sequential and fast fading stream of comments (yeah, this is recursive). Comments are writing, but lets have something not as we know it. Writing in this box just feel a little klunky, there must be a better way, make a better blog :),

Use your passion and geek expertise to liberate the latent creativity that resides in readers, something that works better than the linear, sequential and fast fading stream of comments (yeah, this is recursive). Comments are writing, but lets have something not as we know it. Writing in this box just feel a little klunky, there must be a better way, make a better blog :),